A Yogi claims he hasn’t had anything to eat or drink for 70± years. Now the military is conducting tests to find out how… Funny post at Pharyngula on the topic:

Now the Indian military is studying him because, obviously, soldiers who don’t need to be provisioned would be rather useful…which assumes that this nonsense is even worth studying.

Two cameras have been set up in his room, while a mobile camera films him when he goes outside, guaranteeing round-the-clock observation. His body will be scanned and his brain and heart activity measured with electrodes.

“The observation from this study may throw light on human survival without food and water,” said Dr G. Ilavazahagan, who is directing the research.

That short description already tells me they’re going at this all wrong. He goes outside? Where? How secure is this test?

How silly! The guy probably slips a bite of food while, say, covering his mouth while he coughs. He can take a drink with his hands while washing his face in the sink. Yogis are notorious for magic tricks, like that old “balancing on a cane” tourist trap where there is a tiny built-in platform to sit on, and the cane is buried in the ground holding him up.

My favorite reader comment from underneath the Pharyngula article:

Maybe he is actually one of those desert beetles that crawls to the top of sand dunes, hikes its butt up into the wind, and water vapor condenses from the butt-vortex and trickles down to its mouthparts.

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Some people can read War and Peace and come away thinking it’s a simple adventure story. Others can read the ingredients on a chewing gum wrapper and unlock the secrets of the universe. - Lex Luthor